In October 1974 Malcolm McLaren conjured an unusual group name for four young musicians who congregated at his shop at 430 King’s Road.

//The group name as it appeared on the ‘right’ side of the You’re Gonna Wake Up t-shirt//

At the time the transition from the premises’ previous incarnation as Too Fast To Live Too Young To Die to Sex was nearing completion; in fact the teenagers Paul Cook, Steve Jones, Glen Matlock (who was also a sales assistant on Saturdays) and Wally Nightingale assisted McLaren in applying the finishing touch with the erection of the pink vinyl shop sign constructed at his direction by carpenter Vic Mead.

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Tags: Alan Moore, Archie Shepp, Bernard Rhodes, Bob Marley, Bryan Ferry, Continental Keyholes, Continental Kuties, Eddie Cochran, Gerry Goldstein, Glen Matlock, Iggy Pop, James Brown, Jim Morrison, Jimi Hendrix, King Tubby’s Sound System, Kutie Jones and his Sex Pistols, Lou Stoppard, Marianne Faithfull, New Musical Express, Nick Kent, Paul Cook, QT, Sam Cooke, Steve Jones, Vic mead, Wally Nightingale

//A Prayer For Madonna, The Face, September 1983. Photography: Kate Simon, text: James Truman. This was the superstar’s first substantial UK press appearance, five months ahead of her British live debut//

Of the many talented photographers who provided The Face with its visual verve, Kate Simon was uniquely positioned to chronicle the cutting edge cultural developments in New York in the 1980s.

Simon had spent much of the previous decade in London, photographing musicians and performers from Bob Marley and David Bowie to the Sex Pistols and The Clash (whose debut album features her striking portrait of Strummer, Jones and Simonon). Crucially, Simon’s work also appeared in the New Musical Express during The Face founder Nick Logan’s editorship of the music paper.

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Tags: Bob Marley, Carl Apfelschnitt, Cookie Mueller, Debi Mazar, Halston, James Chance, James Truman, Jellybean Benitez, John Giorno, Kate Simon, Keith Haring, Madonna, Nick Logan, Pierre Clementi, Radio City Music Hall, Riochard Sohl, Robert Mapplethorpe, Sonos, Stephen Sprouse

//Author image for US edition of Bob Marley: The Untold Story, 2009. Photo: Grzegorz Lepiarz.//

NAME: Chris Salewicz

RESIDES: London

OCCUPATION: Writer

Chris Salewicz is a neighbour and friend. My admiration for his work harks back more than three decades, when his words shone from the pages of the NME.

As detailed by In Their Own Write, this was no mean feat since Salewicz was part of the formidable team whose members included (deep breath): Max Bell, Angie Errigo, Pete Erskine, Mick Farren, Chrissie Hynde, Nick Kent, Nick Logan, Ian MacDonald, Kate Phillips, Charles Shaar Murray, Neil Spencer, Tony Tyler…

Now Salewicz deals in big subjects as an author, broadcaster and film-maker: his Strummer and Marley books capture the definitive portraits of these imposing figures, while involvement in such ventures as the documentary Beats Of Freedom denotes a mature reflection on his Polish roots.

In addition, Salewicz’s role as an aide-de-camp in Mick Jones’ ongoing Rock & Roll Public Library project betrays the highly attuned visual sensibilities conveyed in these, his answers to the Blokes Of Britain Questionnaire:

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Tags: Angie Errigo, Bob Marley, Casino, Charles Shaar Murray, Chris Salewicz, Chrissie Hynde, Cockell & Johnson, Deborah & Claire, Ian MacDonald, Jim Carter, Joe Strummer, Johnny Rotten, Johnson's, Marcus Price, Max Bell, Mick Jones, Neil Spencer, Nick Kent, Nick Logan, Pete Erskine, Robert De Niro, Squire, Stirling Cooper, Sweeney's, The Baron, Tony Tyler, Village Gate